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Harmony [userpic]

Life gets in the way

May 29th, 2009 (10:09 pm)
good

current mood: good

Yeah you know when life gets in the way of your blogging? That's what happened to me this past year. I remember when I was able to blog about everything and more importantly about Football and Manchester United and my recipes, but yeah everything just got too hectic I barely was able to watch any games let alone add my commentary. So I will just try and post whenever I could and hope it will be interesting.

So Manchester United lost the Champions League match against Barcelona. I watched the game in the city and it was funny to see because for the first time it was like the city was divided you were either a Barca fan or for Man U. I watched the game with a friend at a Mexican restaurant and it was amusing but us Man U fans were totally out numbered. I felt like the team just didn't come to win. The game was almost dare I say boring. I guess you just can't win them all.

After the match it was rather amusing because I went shopping and saw a semi cute sales clerk wearing a Barca jersey and me with my Man U shirt and he gave me a grin...like..."you know"...yeah I did.

When I got on the subway I had some drunk Man U fans touch my boob where the crest was and say I'm awesome....


Anyway I feel like mentioning the new layout...True blood. I just love the paranormal and love this show, and its coming back on HBO June 14! So cheers.


Mood Good

Harmony [userpic]

Manchester United wins Carlington Cup

March 3rd, 2009 (09:31 pm)
gloomy

current mood: gloomy

Okay so Manchester United won the Carlington Cup. The entire game was just...okay. I mean it was not the most exhilarating game. I was rather impressed with the new goalie and possible Van Der Sar replacement: Ben Foster. I was a little excited when the game came down to a shoot down. I know usually those are just unfair I mean goalie versus strikers but hey, from an audience point of view it is always exciting to see if the goalie can stop such an awesome kick! Anyway, I am of course pleased with the outcome! Lets just hope Manchester United can keep up the league wins and of course win the Championship and the Premier League!


Mood Gloomy

Harmony [userpic]

If I could do whatever I want

February 22nd, 2009 (10:49 pm)
lonely
Tags:

current mood: lonely

Okay I found this funny on a friend's LiveJournal and so I decided to participate:

( 5 TV Boyfriends We All Wish We Had )

1. Eric Northman played by Alexander Skarsgård. Current status: Hot Vampire interested in Sookie Stackhouse
From True Blood.


4. Oguri Shun from Hanazakari no Kimitachi e. He plays Sano Izumi.


3. Peregrin Took from Lord of the Rings Played by Billy Boyd. (And seriously no laughing we're probably the same height anyway!)


4. Orlando Bloom as Legolas from Lord of the Rings...yeah I know its not a TV show but I don't watch TV much okay!


5. Okay this is probably cliche but Mr. Darcy had to go on this list from Pride and Prejudice played by Colin Firth. There is something to that old fashioned Charm...*sigh* men are just not made this way anymore!


 



( 5 TV Boyfriends We All Wish We Could Handle )

1. Jonathan Rhys Meyer's in The Tudors. Currently on Wife #3


2. James Marsters aka Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer the hot sex vamp turned domesticated vamp.


3. Lee Jun Ki  as Seo Jung Woo from My Girl. Bad ass Korean's...


4. Glenn Quinn as Doyle The best thing to ever happen to Angel and it is really unfortunate that he is dead. RIP.


5. Kimg Jeon Hoon as the devious Lee Yul.


Mood Lonely

 


Harmony [userpic]

Update

February 22nd, 2009 (10:35 pm)
busy

current mood: busy

Okay so I know I haven't written in forever. Seriously my schedule really stinks. I have to get up really early in the morning and I get back really late at night. I think this semester will most certainly do me in. I wish I had the luxury that I used to, to sit and blog about the Premier League was joyous but this semester it just doesn't seem to be happening. Unlike last semester where I just had class during all the Manchester games, this semester I am normally so tired I can barely watch the weekend games. I did catch the last 20 minutes of the Fulton game. It was too bad Rooney got tired he had a brilliant chance at another goal...Anyway I digress, I am really sad that I can not report on every game and give my personal blow by blow of the action, hopefully soon I can get back into a rhythm, until then I will post when I can at whatever game I can and try my best to post any other rants I may have or my comments on anything else I may find interesting- when I can.
I am pleased to say that Manchester United has finally gotten to the top of the table and seem to be comfortable there.
I also whenever I get a free random moment have been reading a lot of Paranormal/Fantasy novels. Of the late I have been reading books by both Sherrilyn Kenyon and Kerrelyn Sparks and I must say there books are delectable! Kerrelyn Sparks is great for a cute quick read and Kenyon's world is so elaborate it is breath taking. She really sucks you into her character's world, that is definitely dark and mysterious. I loved it. And her male characters are sexy ^.~.

Mood Busy

Harmony [userpic]

The Nature of Man is Evil

January 26th, 2009 (12:07 am)
Tags:

“Human nature cannot turn back. Once man has left the time of innocence and equality, he can never return to it.” (Rousseau as qtd in Franklin) But was humanity ever innocent? The evil doings of man have been recorded before written language. Stories were told of the barbaric deeds of humanity-the Jews killing Jesus, Eve eating the apple- all things we should not have done, yet did because we wanted to.
The views of human nature have been altered throughout the centuries. In the Middle Ages man was thought to be worthless, and when the black plague came it was considered to be a punishment for all of man’s evil deeds or that is what many believed and many “tried to avert the scourge of God” (Hunt, 481) and how did they do this? By killing Jews- as if taking the lives of others was the right way to save themselves from hell. This was during a time period with a very basic understanding of the world, and yet these peoples conscious told them that by taking the lives of others they can save themselves. Directly after the Middle Ages came the Renaissance. The renaissance became known as the rebirth of the concept that humanity was not evil. There was a new connection “among power, culture, and fame in an age that was rediscovering the arts and the worldview of classical antiquity” (Hunt, 505). These beliefs became so popular that a movement known as the Enlightenment commenced. Many philosophes believed that humans still had a chance to be good under the right conditions. But inevitably humanity failed the philisophes. The ill treatment of people during the Industrial revolution as well as during World War I showed that people would never change their selfish ways.
In the 1500s the most holy people were failing to be honest people. The clergy told people that as a way to prevent their souls from going to hell they could earn a church “indulgence”. These indulgences usually were obtained by giving the church money. It became a common church practice to sell indulgences instead of having people do good works. As explained by experts in the field of history “[This] suggested that the church was more interested in making money than in saving souls” (Hunt, 549). If alleged holy people are capable of being selfish then what about the rest of us?
For awhile it appeared that there was hope for humanity. In the 1740s a new movement known as the Enlightenment began. This intellectual movement involved philosophers dedicated to solving the real problems of the world, including the question of the “nature of man”. One great philosophe who may cause a rebuttal to the argument that humans are naturally evil was John Locke. As explained within the text of The Making of The West, a text book written by highly qualified historians, they explained that John Locke believed that human’s are not truly evil by nature. “Unlike Hobbes…he thought people were reasonable and the state of nature peaceful” (Hunt, 650). He believed that we are all born as a tabula rassa or a blank slate, and that it is society that causes us to act certain ways. Yet, if we are born as clean as John Locke suggested, then why do we have such a dishonest society? If that held true, our society would have began without such corruption.
It was the realities of the Industrial Revolution that started to etch away the fantasies that were born during the Enlightenment. Manchester a new city that became the icon which all industrial city’s modeled off of, became the primary example of how humans could care less about one another. Manchester became a slum full of factories and filthy sewers. The residents of Manchester did nothing to prevent the dark cloud over the city. But worst of all- they did not do anything to help each other. Frederick Engles an renowned philosophe who visited Manchester wrote, “he who turns in thither gets into a filth and disgusting grime, the equal of which is not to be found - especially in the courts which lead down to the Irk, and which contain unqualifiedly the most horrible dwellings which I have yet beheld.” (Engles) The poor factory workers had to work over time with no pay, in dangerous conditions, and if anything happened to the workers in these dangerous factories they were responsible. These new factory owners could care less about their employees. Even though it was these vital workers who made their fortunes, these factory owners only cared for their interests. Some may even argue that holds true for today. One of the biggest corporations named Wal-Mart deals with many lawsuits about their treatment of employees. Many of the Wal-Mart employee’s felt unjust and like just a number in a pool of employee’s. Wal-Mart however does try to “brainwash” their employee’s by having gatherings, cheers, and songs as portrayed in a television special about the corporation. But as Barbara Ehrenreich describes in her book, “How, she wondered, would the four million women (most with children) soon to be pushed off the rolls and into the labor market make their way on wages of $6 or $7 an hour -- an amount that it was universally agreed was not a living wage?” (Gallagher) A wage that Wal-Mart and other major corporations pay to their employers who need to survive off of that salary.
If that is how bosses treat their employees then what about how rulers treat their citizens? Historians mark the beginning of World War I the end official end of the Enlightenment because if is the time when all philosophers gave up hope in any good in humanity. How could anyone allow for such a catastrophe? Throughout the centuries wars have been fought for many reasons -religion, land, and pride- but were any of these really worth the death of hundreds sometimes millions of lives? As written in a poem by Owen during the war he writes, “What passing-bells for these who die as cattle?” (Owen) How can anyone look another human being in the eye-a human being made from the same blood and bones as he or she is- and kill them? Does this not show the epitome of our disgusting race? How can war be considered valiant? People who “serve their country”- why would anyone want to hurt another person? Why can we not accept that we just have different beliefs? Or why can we not just accept that we live in this or that country? How can anyone live themselves after something like that? Why does it ever have to come down to an extreme such as warfare?
People will not even try to help their fellow man. Not without an initiative. It is as if the word charity has become “something given to a person or persons in need while getting something in return”. People work with charity’s sometimes in order to gain tax exemptions. According to the IRS website, “To be tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, an organization must be organized and operated exclusively for purposes set forth in section 501(c)(3), and none of its earnings may inure to any private shareholder or individual.” (IRS) Also people who donate to these charities can also qualify to receive some tax exemptions. Such exemptions may appeal to a donor as a catalyst to donate. Even an incentive to join the army, soldiers could gain a free education and tax returns for serving their country. It is as if for every penny we hand out, we need a reason to do it. It is as if we can not help unless we get some sort of reparation or acknowledgement for it. Charity’s now advertise that you can get a free shirt or free meal for donating. Embarrassingly enough even the military uses such tactics to recruit soldiers. On a televised advertising campaign the military stated that if you join you even get a “free messenger bag”. Centuries earlier Kings and Queens used to give to the poor because it improved their image. There always seems to be an underlying incentive for helping others.
But should we be surprised? We can not even help ourselves. Global warming has become scientifically a problem. Al Gore showed in his documentary An Inconvenient Truth all the numbers to prove it is a problem to the world. But people still will not do anything drastic enough to help the crisis. Some people are buying hybrid cars for the wrong reasons: They will get tax cuts. How can live with ourselves knowing we are buying hummers while our Earth is being destroyed by them? We are choosing what is comfortable for us now, without even thinking of the consequences they will have in the future.
We will not help others, we will not help ourselves, and we are even out to hurt others. We sell products that we know can kill people. Cigarettes have been linked with deadly illnesses. How can cigarette corporations sell these death sticks and not feel any remorse or guilt? TRUTH, an anti-cigarette organization has posted televised advertisements to show how cigarette companies are even targeting their product to children. It seems absurd, doesn’t it? But no one is doing anything drastic about it, are they?
Two philosophers are always compared in the discussion of the true nature of man. Their names are Thomas More and Niccolo Machiavelli. Thomas More in his book Utopia lamented the way humans behave. He believed that our decisions and the things we care for are all fabricated. He believed that if we lived in a world like the one in his book, we would all be humane to one another. He even expresses all the strange decisions we made. For example, “…people play-dice, cards, backgammon, tennis, bowls, quoits-what are they but quick methods of wasting a man’s money, and sending him straight off to become a thief?....In other words, you create thieves, and then punish them for stealing!” (More 27) Yet More has hope! Like John Locke, he believed that if our society changed, and we brought up our predecessors with different values, that humans would once again be good. On the other end of the spectrum is Machiavelli. Machiavelli believed that it is our human nature to be selfish and full of desire. He believed that people needed rulers who would understand this, and learn to cater to this folly. His book The Prince became a guideline for all rulers, on how to rule. Even if you take some of the mistakes previous rulers made in the past, you could find that Machiavelli did warn them of such mistakes. People sometimes wonder why Machiavelli didn’t become a king himself. “…he lacked nothing to reign except a realm” (Machiavelli 26) Machiavelli explains that “men change rulers willingly, hoping to better their lot, and this belief makes them take arms against their ruler.” (Machiavelli 10) People are always out to better themselves, even if their ruler is amazing, if they feel that they can better themselves they will cross their ruler. That is simply the way of man.
We should not be surprised anymore. When air planes hit two towers killing thousands, or when someone bombs a train, why are we surprised? We struggle to be kind, gentle, and peaceful because it is not in our nature. As difficult as it is to accept, we must, because that may be the first step in trying to suppress our problem.



Works Cited

Engles, Frederick. “Modern History Sourcebook.” Friederich Engels: Industrial Manchester, 1844 . August. 2007. 29 May 2007. <http://ww.forham.edu/halsall/mod/1844engels.html>.
Franklin, Ian. "18th Century Texts." Eighteenth Century Bibliography. 13 Feb. 2007. 26 May 2007 <http://www.c18th.com/author-works.aspx?id=4>.
Gallagher, Dorothy. "Making Ends Meet." NY Times. 12 May 2001. NY Times. 26 May 2007 <http://www.nytimes.com/books/01/05/13/reviews/010513.13gallagt.html?_r=1&oref=slogin>.
Hunt, Lynn, Barbara H. Rosenwein, Po-Chia R. Hsia, and Bonnie G. Smith. The Making of the West. Boston/New York: Bedford/St. Martin\'s, 2005. 3-1224.
Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Prince. New York: Barnes & Nobles Books, 2003. 5-224.
More, Thomas. Utopia. London: Penguin Books, 2003. 7-135.
"Topics for Individuals." IRS. 26 May 2007 <http://www.irs.gov/individuals/topic/index.html>.
Halsall , Paul. “Modern History Sourcebook” World War I Poetry. August, 1997. May 2007. <http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/1914warpoets.html>

Harmony [userpic]

Bolton 0:1 Manchester United

January 17th, 2009 (11:50 am)
current mood: elf Detonate

What a frustrating game! At least Manchester United scored at the last minute. I am sorry I can't sit and write more I just don't have the heart, too much going on right now.


Mood Self Detonate

Harmony [userpic]

Manchester United 1:0 Wigan Athletic

January 14th, 2009 (09:41 pm)
relaxed

current mood: relaxed

I missed the first goal...why? Cause it was within like the first minute and I got to start watching it on the 3rd minute! But poor Rooney, I hope his injury isn't serious- but he did get a goal! So at least you know...he got the winning goal.I really hope Ronaldo gets into better shape. I am pretty sure he missed almost every free kick and he used to always be a threat...BUT! I was really impressed with Tevez, he's a fighter. He tries so hard! He always fights even if it looks impossible he fights! They just need to win one more game!

MANCHESTER UNITED FIGHTING!

Mood Relaxed

Harmony [userpic]

Manchester United 3:0 Chelsea

January 13th, 2009 (10:40 pm)
tired

current mood: tired

Okay I wanted to write this sooner but my computer has been dead. But I remember this game very vividly. I just want to say how proud I am of Manchester United. They played so well, and I got a glimpse of the old Ronaldo...*sigh*...I was so pleased! I just had to let that out. I hope Evra is okay since he got injured. I am still sad that Tevez did not play I feel like he could do so well if only Fergie let him play! Oh well, we will see how it goes….

Mood Tired

Harmony [userpic]

Birthday cake

January 7th, 2009 (07:14 pm)
nostalgic
Tags:

current mood: nostalgic

Birthday Cake
1 1/2 cup of Flour
2 eggs
1 cup of sour milk (you can make this by taking 1 cup of milk + 1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar)
1/2 cup of Hershey's powder chocolate
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon of white wine vinegar
1 1/2 cup of white sugar
1 stick of butter (unsalted)
1 tablespoon of Pure Vanilla extract
1 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda


Preheat oven at 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Mix eggs, butter, salt, vanilla extract, and salt and mix with a mixer on low. Then add flour, sour milk, powder chocolate, and sure and mix. Add the vinegar and the baking soda and mix again until well mixed. Put in a greased round pan that you use for pies and put in oven for about 35 minutes.



Mood Nostalgic

Harmony [userpic]

Derby 1:0 Manchester United

January 7th, 2009 (04:34 pm)
sad

current mood: sad

What an awful game! I only caught the second half but maybe its better I missed the first half....what crap. This should have been an easy game! It was boring honestly. And in the second half they weren't even attacking. The last four minutes Manchester wasn't even in the Derby half of the field. I am not even sure what to think. Ronaldo is awful this season he missed two free kicks...Rooney and Tevez did nothing. This is a bad season for Manchester United....

Mood Sad

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